So it's definitely unique a very original concept. It might not be everyone's cup of tea but I really enjoyed it.... for the most part! The characters are incredibly unlikeable but they're clearly written that way and they do have a depth to them. They're also not the same old characters you come across in every other horror/ thriller book. It was a tad slow to start but once it picked up then it definitely achieved that super eerie creepy vibe and it has plenty twists, turns and things that go bump in the night. And then it goes all M. Night Shyamalan. Which is fair enough if you can take things with a pinch of salt n don't need for these books to be realistic to enjoy then. I liked it for what it was n just didn't over think it. Creepy, gets under you skin, def has an ending you'd never in a million years see coming

Just Like Home by Sarah Gailey might have a pink cover, but it's a super dark story. We follow Vera, a young woman who returns to the house she grew up in after her dying mother finally gets in touch and asks her to come home. From the very beginning we know there is something about the house and this family - there's a sinister feeling, strange things happen and Vera hears unexplained noises. Then, there's also a dark secret about her father and what happened when Vera was only a child.

I love reading about (haunted) houses and families that live in them. The relationship between Vera and Daphne, her mother, is very toxic but Gailey handled it so well, it was fascinating to read. Especially as the story progresses and we realise what contributed to this love/hate relationship. The description of the house were detailed and vivid, which was brilliant as well. The more gruesome and dark parts of the novel made my skin crawl - excellent stuff!

My two only issues with Just Like Home: 1) the book begins sooooo slowly. There's a mystery from the start, yes, but there was something about Gailey's writing that made the entire story drag a lot. When the story did pick up at about 45% it went absolutely wild and it was great! Things escalated quickly, skeletons were taken out of the closet, and I was pleasantly (and disturbingly) surprised. 2) James Dewitt character was very undeveloped and therefore felt redundant.

It was my first Sarah Gailey book and I enjoyed her imagination, so will definitely try some of her other books in the future. Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I don't particularly enjoy giving 1 star reviews for ARCs (or any books), but aside from the cover there was nothing I liked about this book.

First of all there is the main character, Vera. Her mother is dying and calls her back home. Vera doesn't have much of a personality and she doesn't come across as particularly likable, so I couldn't bring myself to care about her.
Her mother is pretty terrible as well so I never quite understood why Vera would do her the favour to return to the house.

My next issue with the book is that I didn't find it scary. At all. If I read a triller with horror elements I expect to feel at least some sense of dread, but I was bored most of the time and very tempted to just skip to the end to see how everything would tie together (I didn't though, I read the whole thing).

Then last but not least there was the end of the book. I don't want to spoil anything, but none of it worked for me. The whole plot-twist was just too bizarre and not particularly well executed.

In the end I can only say that I wanted to like this book, but I just didn't.